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ESCAFLOWNE: A GIRL IN GAIA Film Premiere
Perhaps one of the most popular events at Anime Expo 2000 proved to be the
North American premiere (actually it was the very first premiere of the
film outside of Japan!) of the new ESCAFLOWNE
movie, ESCAFLOWNE: A GIRL IN GAIA.
The film proved so popular that it elicited ten showings of
the film, with every one of them being filled to maximum capacity. In fact,
the midnight showing of the film (which should've been the least busy) had
so many people waiting that AX staffers had to turn away many disappointed
fans who waited hours to get in.
The film,
created by BONES and Sunrise Studios, is an alternate retelling
of the ESCAFLOWNE story,
made famous in the original 26 episode TV series.
Featuring the return of the original staff and seiyuu, ESCAFLOWNE the movie
proved to be one of the most visually impressive anime films to have been
released yet, rivaling Studio Ghibli's MONONOKE HIME in terms of visuals.
Yet due to the sheer amount of story and background in the ESCAFLOWNE TV
series, comparing the movie to it left me feeling a bit empty; there is
simply no way the 2 hour movie can compete with its 26
episode TV series
heritage for character development and depth, but in the end, the movie
proved to be well worth the wait, as the stunning animation and unique
retelling of the ESCAFLOWNE story was more than sufficient.
SHOUJO KAKUMEI UTENA: ADOLESCENCE MOKUSHIROKU (REVOLUTIONARY GIRL UTENA:
ADOLESCENCE APOCALYPSE) Film Premiere
Saturday afternoon marked another premiere for Anime Expo, the first
showing of the new UTENA movie, SHOUJO KAKUMEI UTENA: ADOLESCENCE
MOKUSHIROKU (REVOLUTIONARY GIRL UTENA: ADOLESCENCE APOCALYPSE). It was the
35mm North American debut of the film, complete with a pristine print.
Director Ikuhara Kunihiko and character designer Saito Chiho, both AX Guests of
Honor, were present at the debut to speak a
few words before the opening of the movie to an energetic and enthused full
house.
The film
itself is at once a retelling of the UTENA series, as well as a
"pseudo-sequel," relying on the fans' prior knowledge of the series. It is
both in the fact that it starts off with the retelling—in many ways
completely different—of how Tenjo Utena shows up at her new school,
and how she came to be a Duelist (and how she met all the other
characters). For example, instead of receiving the ring with the rose seal
from a prince when she was younger (ala the TV series), she gets the ring
from a mysterious white rose in the middle of a rose garden at the current
school itself. Yet at the same time, there are many inferences and quick
cuts between characters that rely on previous knowledge of the series;
seeing the previous TV series first would help viewers in understanding
certain situations, like Himemiya Anthy's twisted relationship with her brother.
Overall,
the movie is a compact, beautifully animated retelling of the
UTENA story, complete with a better
fleshing out of the fate of Utena and
Anthy. Yet, while it is the most gorgeous rendition of UTENA that fans have
seen yet, the problem comes with its film direction and script. The film,
to put it mildly, is a hodge-podge collection of gratuitous scenes
bordering on the taboo (e.g., incest) between many of the characters in the
series. If you thought THE END OF EVANGELION movie was confusing, it seems
Ikuhara wanted to one-up Anno in that department: the story advances
with uneven progress and massive leaps in logic. The audience's suspension of
disbelief is tested so much that in the end, you just have
to let it go and watch in disbelief.
The
only aspect keeping this movie from completely falling apart is the
indelible imagery from Saito Chiho and Ikuhara Kunihiko's vision—one
filled with unique flowery imagery and bizarre compositions that attract as
much as they shock at times. In the end, while a nice debut for Anime Expo,
fans should be careful about importing this film, unless they are looking
for the bizarre, confused, and banal.
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